Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1996

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 113, NWS State College, PA

June 17, 1996York County, Pennsylvania

NWS State College, PA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jun 17, 1996, 4:54 PM EDT for York County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 66 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Jun 17, 1996, 4:54 PM EDT (20:54 UTC)
Expired
Jun 17, 1996, 6:00 PM EDT
In force
66 min
Issued by
NWS State College, PA
Area
Whole counties

County York County, PA

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Jun 17, 5:08 PM EDTThunderstorm WindSlate Hill, PA

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in.

The nearest sounding before it

Phillips Aaf/Abe, MD (KAPG), launched 12:00Z, 8.9 hours before the alert went out and 73 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Phillips Aaf/Abe, MD at 12:00Z on 1996-06-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 60 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Phillips Aaf/Abe, MD at 12:00Z on 1996-06-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 21 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
60 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-138 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1448 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
18 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
21 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
28 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KCTP 172055
SVRCTP
PAC133-172200-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
454 PM EDT MON JUN 17 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  600 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS......
 
IN  PENNSYLVANIA
 
   ...YORK COUNTY
 
AT 450 PM DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER SOUTHERN YORK
COUNTY BETWEEN SUNNYBURN AND FAWN GROVE. THIS THUNDERSTORM MAY PRODUCE
HAIL...STRONG WINDS AND TORRENTIAL RAINFALL. THE STORM WILL EXIT
SOUTHEASTERN YORK COUNTY AROUND 530 PM.
 
 
IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER FROM THE WEATHER IN A
STRONG BUILDING.  DAMAGING WIND...LARGE HAIL...VERY HEAVY RAIN...
AND DEADLY LIGHTNING ARE ALL POSSIBLE IN SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS.
STAY INSIDE AWAY FROM WINDOWS UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED.
NICOSIA/GRUMM

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS State College, PA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jun 17, 1:33 PM EDT, 3 hours 21 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 17, 1:33 PM EDT, 3 hours 21 minutes before
CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
130 PM EDT MON JUN 17 1996

...ZONE SUGGESTIONS...

...PIT/PHL...ADAP SHOWS DECENT CAP AND HIGHER LI'S MAINTAINING OVER
NRN ZONES. HAVE NO PROBLEM IN AT LEAST DOWN PLAYING THUNDER UP
NORTH TONITE. MAYBE WORD AS SHOWERS...WITH A RUMBLE OF THUNDER
POSSIBLE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. CELLS THAT HAVE POPPED UP
ELSEWHERE SO FAR SEEM RELUCTANT TO MOVE VERY FAR OR FAST. MAY BE
DEALING WITH FLASH FLOODING IN SPOTS...BUT WOULD BE HARD PRESSED TO
SAY WHAT AREA(S) WILL BE MOST UNDER THE GUN. FAVOR MENTION OF HEAVY
DOWNPOURS EXCEPT MAYBE OVER NORTH WHERE AIRMASS IS A BIT MORE
STABLE AND DRIER.

...DISCUSSION...
NOT MUCH CHANGE FROM AM PACKAGE DISCUSSION...WEAK BOUNDARY ACROSS
STATE SEPARATES THE SOUPY AIR OVER THE SOUTH FROM THE PLAIN OLD
MUGGY AIR OVER THE NORTH. LOOKS LIKE BOUNDARY WILL NOT MOVE MUCH IN
TIME JUDGING FROM GRIDDED DATA PRESSURE AND LIFTED INDEX FIELDS.
BOUNDARY WILL ACT AS FOCUS FOR DIURNAL BOUTS OF CONVECTION AT LEAST
AND UNTIL SYSTEM TO OUR WEST DECIDES SOME TIME MAYBE LATER THIS
WEEK TO DIE OR MOVE THROUGH.

SYSTEM MOVEMENT FROM WEST WILL BE HINDERED BY HINTS AT DEVELOPING
REX BLOCK PATTERN AS IT CLOSES OFF AND CRAWLS TWD WRN GR LAKES.
THIS KEEPS HGHTS HIGH OVER ERN SEABOARD AND MAINTAINS FLOW OF HUMID
AIR FOR SVRL DAYS. DEVELOPING RIGHT ENTRANCE REGION TO THE JET
SLIDES SLOWLY NORTHEAST TO NRN NEW ENG AND EVENTUALLY OFF COAST.
THIS HELPS SUPPORT THE DEVELOPMENT OF AT LEAST SOME LOW LEVEL
FRONTOGENETIC FORCING ALONG BOUNDARY WITH TIME. THE INCREASE IN LOW
LEVEL CONVERGENCE WILL NOT HURT CONVECTIVE POTENTIAL OF WARM HUMID
AIRMASS IN PLACE.

SEE LITTLE CHANGE THRU MID WEEK WITH AVN KEEPING ERN HGHTS
HIGH...BUT POLLUTED BY WEAK UPPER TROF TRYING TO SLITHER THRU FLOW.

LA CORTE

The office that day

Everything else NWS State College, PA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 17, 1:55 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPSchuylkill50 min
Jun 17, 2:10 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPSchuylkill3 hr
Jun 17, 3:05 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPLebanon3 hr
Jun 17, 3:51 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPLancaster69 min
Jun 17, 4:59 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPLancaster3 hr
Jun 17, 5:02 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPCentre118 min
Jun 17, 5:16 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPLebanon3 hr
Jun 17, 5:35 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPDauphin55 min
Jun 17, 5:46 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPDauphin3 hr
Jun 17, 6:55 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPCentre4 hr
Jun 17, 7:20 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPColumbia3 hr

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Pennsylvania, 1996Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1996

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.